Last Saturday afternoon Betty and I screened BRAVO! at the West Roxbury, Massachusetts, VA. The VA is located in a beautiful suburb of Boston and sits among streets lined with stately trees and green-lawned parks.

The screening was hosted and arranged by Marie Mottola Chalmers whose cousin, Vincent Mottola, was killed in action on February 23, 1968. Vincent Mottola was a Marine with Bravo Company. A large number of Vincent’s family, including his brother, William, and numerous cousins attended.

Also on hand were relatives of Mike McCauley, another Bravo Marine who is in the film. Mike’s two brothers, Larry and Jim, his sister Claire, in-laws and close friends attended the screening.

BRAVO! supporter Mark Cahill (and his son Dillon who is a student in the Boston area),a good friend of Bravo Company Skipper Ken Pipes attended the screening all the way from Southern California.

As in all our screenings so far, the overwhelming response to the film was deeply gratifying to Betty and I. Some of the folks with relatives in Bravo Company, 1/26 who came to see the film had no idea about the savage grind, the vicious nature of the Siege of Khe Sanh. Their emotional response to the film was moving.

The Boston screening had several special moments that made it unique among our showings. Young Mr. Benjamin Hoffman opened the afternoon with a stirring a cappella rendition of the National Anthem. Closing out the evening, a detachment of United States Marines from the First Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment stationed at Fort Devens, Massachusetts, posted the colors and lead the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance.

A big OOORAH!is due Marie Chalmers and the Mottola family, Ms. Diane Keith of the West Roxbury VA, Benjamin Hoffman, Mark Cahill, the MacCauleys and the color guard of the First Battalion, 25th Marines for their initiative and support.

In associated news, if you missed the blog post about our Washington, DC, screening of BRAVO! to 130-plus viewers, you can check it out here.

In addition, one of the folks who attended the screening was short story author, Siobhan Fallon, whose book of short stories, You Know When the Men Are Gone, (G. P. Putnam’s Sons) is a wrenching and realistic look at war’s effects on the warriors’ loved ones. Siobhan blogged about her impressions of BRAVO! You can read Siobhan Fallon’s blog here.